Six Long Years
by QueenMimi96
Summary: Six years. Six long years since she'd last seen her boyfriend, John Murphy,'s face. They had come down to the ground together, survived together - all those years ago. Then Praimfaya happened. And everything changed. Everything. After he and the others went back to the Ark in space...she was left alone. With just her thoughts...and a baby growing in her stomach. His baby. Two-shot.
1. Chapter 1

It's like I could still feel him - warm breath on the back of my neck, skin on mine, his strong arms wrapped around me... And no matter what, I could still remember every single feature on that face... Hot tears filled my dark brown eyes as I glanced down at the pocket knife in my hand, fingertips digging into the crevices of the initials that had been carved into the side: J. M. He'd given it to me to protect myself. After all, he had no more use for it any longer - having long since become a different man than he used to be. He still worried for my safety, though - especially with the grounders around.

He always wanted to be right by my side whenever we had any talks with them, his hand finding mine, fingers intertwining... I'd always remember that about him in these coming years... A single tear cascaded down my cheek then as the memories washed over me and suddenly, it was like a dam broke. The tears came out in buckets, streaming down my face as my chest heaved. I clutched the knife so hard my knuckles turned white, the coolness of it against my palm giving me only a fraction of peace. Murphy was gone.

My love, my life, my John was _gone_. And this time...he wasn't coming back. Not for a long time... I'd have to spend the next six years of my life without him here... It was going to be an _eternity_. Another sob bubbled up from my throat as I threw myself onto the bed in my newly designated room here in the Bunker.

We didn't even get a last goodbye. Bellamy was the last one to be heard from before they went up in space...before the connection was lost. I felt disoriented... _inconsolable_. My chest heaved with fresh tears as I flipped over onto my back, staring up at the ceiling of this tiny little room that would be my prison for the next few years, John's face swimming in my mind. Yet there was something I had needed to say... _just_ once. Ever so slowly, I moved my hand up to rest on my flat stomach, not being able to feel the baby growing in there quite yet.

And I never got the chance.

 **~ Six Years Later ~**

The familiar pocket knife brushed against my leg in my jeans pocket as I ran down the hallway, chasing after the shrieking little girl ahead. I received a few glares and pointed looks from Arkadians and Grounders alike before finally, I caught up to her. Sweeping up the small child into my arms, she giggled as if her disobedience was the funniest thing. I rolled my eyes in annoyance and frustration as I glanced down at her. But as per usual, my anger melted when I caught a glimpse of my six-year-old daughter. Strands of short dark brown hair framed her oval-shaped face, her eyes a cornflower blue identical to her father's.

"Sorry, mommy," she said cheekily and I couldn't help but smile, shaking my head.

"Just don't do it again, Rayanne, understand? It's not funny - you could get hurt, sweetie," I reprimanded her, a soft but stern tone to my voice.

She nodded meekly and I smiled again, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead before setting her back down. Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind me and turned to find Octavia staring back at me as Rayanne disappeared down the corridor. Her eyes were wide with disbelief and I tilted my head in confusion, placing a hand on her shoulder to shake her from her stupor.

"What? O, what is it?" I asked softly and finally, her eyes connected to mine.

She swallowed hard, still a bit disoriented before she spoke. And the words that left her mouth shocked me to my very core.

"The others...they're back."


	2. Chapter 2

I felt all the air leave my lungs and my jaw went slack, her news leaving me reeling. I could hear a ringing in my ears, blocking out the rest of her words entirely as I felt my breath come in gasps. Murphy...was he...was he _back_?! How-how could he...he was back? I felt her shaking me then and finally, I glanced up into her dark brown eyes.

"Is he...is he with them? Is John with them?!" I asked her frantically, searching her gaze for the truth.

Ever so slowly, she shrugged, "Honestly, I'm not sure. The Rover just got here-"

Before the rest of the words could even leave her mouth, I was racing down the hallway, my boots thudding on the white tile. Seconds later, she was hot on my heels and together, we ran to the front door of the Bunker. My heart was pounding in my chest so loud, I could barely hear the feverish energy of the others around me as a crowd formed just as the doors began to open. All was silent for a single moment...and then a surge of excitement shot through everyone, shouts and cries abounding. It occurred to me in that moment...just how long it had been since we'd last seen each other. We'd started dating the year before the apocalypse happened, before Praimfaya.

My eyelids shuttered closed at my next thought - one that had been gnawing at the back of my mind. Would he still love me if I was no longer that young girl he knew? I was a mother now, no longer his teenage girlfriend. Even so...the memory of him still brought butterflies to my stomach. But would John still love me six years later? I hadn't noticed it quiet down around me until a gasp erupted in front of me.

My eyes flew open then...into a familiar lovely shade of cornflower blue that I had missed so dearly. It was like everything was in slow-motion then as I drank him in - his hair was shorter now than it had been, his skin cleaner, slightly more muscular than before...but those eyes. My gosh, those eyes were the same electric color I had fell in love with so long ago. And just like that, everything sped up and I was back in his arms.

The scent of filled my nose and I buried my face into the crook of his neck, the tears coming on loud and fast just as voices resumed around me, eyes no longer on the two of us. His arms held me tightly to his chest and my fingers dug into his t-shirt, as if to make sure he was really there.

"Is this real?" I whispered into the cotton material of his shoulder, tears soaking his shirt, "Are you really here with me?"

My voice broke on the last word and I felt his arms tighten around me, bringing me as close to himself as he could.

"I'm here... Baby, I'm here," he said softly, pressing a kiss into my hair.

Slowly, I entangled myself from him - if only slightly so as to glance up into his eyes. With hesitant movements, I placed a hand on either side of his face, fingers caressing his skin. His eyes fluttered closed briefly, leaning into my touch.

"I missed you, John... I missed you _so much_!" I sobbed as I gazed up at him.

That was all either of us needed to hear before his lips crashed into mine, hands encircling my waist tightly. Our lips moved in sync, the kiss full of all the pent-up passion that had been building these past six years. He deepened the kiss then and I roughly pulled at the brown hair at the nape of his neck. But before we could continue, we were suddenly interrupted by a small voice from below us.

"Mommy, why are you kissing that strange man?" Rayanne asked as we pulled apart.

John looked down at her, confusion etched on his face as his gaze switched from her to me to her then back to me once more. Smiling slightly, I brushed the tears away with the back of my hand before looking up at John.

"Rayanne...meet your daddy," I said softly.

Murphy's eyes widened considerably, the weight of those words dawning on him as he looked down again at the small girl, taking in her features that were so similar to his own.

"I...I have a daughter?" he breathed out in shock, eyes connecting to mine.

Slowly, I nodded, suddenly feeling nervous - scared, even. What if he didn't want her? Want us? It had been a long time but the John Murphy I'd known wouldn't have wanted kids. But...had space changed him? Had time changed him? Before my thoughts could run more rampant than they already were, Murphy had bent down to our daughter's level. I sucked in a sharp breath as they stared back at one another. Surprisingly, Rayanne didn't flinch away like she usually did with strangers - she was oddly calm around him. And finally, she was the one to break the silence that had ensued between them.

"Daddy?" she asked him hesitantly, big blue eyes full of innocence as she uttered the word.

What happened next was so beautiful, it brought me to tears. A bright smile lit up Murphy's face and slowly, he nodded to her question. Within seconds, the tiny child had tackled him, catching him slightly off-guard. But gradually, he wrapped his arms around Rayanne as she snuggled into his chest. I covered my mouth to stifle the happy sob that threatened to spill out. We were complete. A family.

And with the realization of those words in my head...it finally hit me: Murphy and I...had a family. The world wasn't perfect...but right now? It felt like my life was.


End file.
